It's no bait-and-switch scam: a California company has deployed a crack team of Bluegill fish to guard America's drinking water from potential terror attacks.
Intelligent Automation Corp says its "IAC 1090 Intelligent Aquatic BioMonitoring System" has already been bought by New York and San Francisco city authorities to monitor water supplies to their populations.
It works by diverting water samples from a river or reservoir through a small aquarium containing eight Bluegill fish which patrol round the clock for potentially lethal water-borne dangers.
The system, developed in partnership with US Army scientists at Fort Detrick in Maryland, is about the size of a large suitcase and can be set up on a table.
Fears of potential terror attacks against critical US infrastructure, including water supplies, have risen since the September 11, 2001 attacks, spawning a boom for the US security industry.
Animals have long been used in times of conflict. The US Navy trains dolphins to detect sea mines and help divers underwater. But records show few if any instances where fish have been deployed to the front lines of defence.
The small, brownish-colored Bluegills, or "Lepomis macrochirus", are not demanding security guards, but IAC vice president Bill Lawler says the tiny sentinels are still well looked after when they are on duty.
"The idea is to keep the fish very happy. They're enclosed in the aquarium with a light on inside and the temperature of the water is controlled so it's always constant," Lawler told AFP by telephone from IAC's headquarters in Poway, California. "There's no man-made sensor, so I'm told by the Army scientists, that can detect toxicity, which is why the fish are great," he explained.
The system's computer can be configured to alert officials remotely of a potentially hazardous chemical in the water supply by phone or e-mail, or even set up to shut off a water supply.
It relies on complex mathematical computer models to monitor the fishes' behaviour and water quality to determine possible toxic threats.
While lured by its wider anti-terror net, budget-pressed cities are unlikely to reel at its price tag. The seven-year-old IAC, whose main business is helicopter maintenance, sells a basic system for about 45,000 dollars.
"We've had interest from a number of different places, including from outside the United States. The technology can be exported," Lawler said.
Another large US city has purchased the Bluegill anti-terror system, but has requested it not be identified publicly.
Unlike the canary in the coal mine, whose early warning for methane gas was to drop dead, the Bluegills system relies on cutting-edge technology. The fish are constantly monitored as they swim, breath and cough by non-contact sensors mounted in the aquarium, said Lawler, a former US Navy helicopter pilot.
The computer monitors trigger an alert if they notice changes in the fishes' motion, ventilation rates, their average depth or even cough rate. Yes, fish do cough.
Bluegills will respond to a wide range of chemicals and offer a fast, reliable detection of toxic water conditions for several groups of materials including metals, cyanide, organic solvents and pesticides, according to IAC.
Aside from ringing an early alarm bell to a potential terror attack, the fish can also guard against industrial accidents.
Lawler cited an incident in New York where the fish patrol helped detect a diesel spill from a barge which enabled the authorities to contain the leak.
He said the Bluegills usually serve two-week shifts before being rotated out of their tanks for some well-earned rest, to be replaced by a fresh team.
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